The Press Box.

Lions Lure Thomas From Vikings

PONTIAC, Mich. — Two-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Henry Thomas, an unrestricted free agent who played with Minnesota for eight seasons, signed a three-year deal with the Detroit Lions on Monday.

"This organization is committed to winning and felt like they were one player or a few players away from going all the way. I hope I fit into that puzzle for them," Thomas said.

Financial terms weren't disclosed. Thomas, 30, made $2.386 million last season with the Vikings, who decided not to name him their franchise player because they would have had to pay him about $2.9 million.

"You can afford to pay anybody you want to pay," said Vikings vice president Jeff Diamond, who handles player negotiations. "We made a decision that this is the way we're going to go, and that's the way it came down."

The Lions hired John Teerlinck as their assistant head coach/defense last month. He had been the Vikings' defensive line coach the last three years.

"Money was a big factor (in signing with the Lions), but J.T. being here was another big factor," Thomas said.

Thomas, 6 feet 2 inches and 277 pounds, led the Vikings' line with 65 tackles last season and was second with 8.5 tackles for losses. He also had seven sacks.